Conflicted Feelings as Israel Reflects on 18 Months of War
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Today on State of the World, conflicted feelings as Israel reflects on 18 months of war. You're listening to State of the World from NPR. We bring you the day's most vital international stories up close where they're happening. It's Wednesday, April 30th. I'm Greg Dixon. Wednesday was Memorial Day in Israel, a holiday honoring Israelis killed in wars and attacks. Today, we're going to talk about the state of the world.

And this year, the Day of Remembrance comes as Israelis are reckoning with the war in Gaza, which has lasted more than a year and a half. It is the longest war Israel has ever waged. NPR's Daniel Estrin takes us to Memorial Day in Tel Aviv. And just to note, this story mentions suicide. Memorial Day in Israel began with a piercing siren. ♪

Drivers and pedestrians stopped and stood in silence, a unifying moment for Israelis divided about continuing the war in Gaza. This video posted on social media captures a grieving father at the official government memorial service. His son, a soldier, was killed in Gaza.

The man screams when the Israeli Speaker of Parliament mentions his son's name. Don't talk about my son, he repeats. You are not worthy of his blood. You don't deserve to be public servants, he says. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approached the man to console him.

At another ceremony, Netanyahu said Israel's young soldiers believe in their mission after the Hamas attack in 2023. Our sons and daughters,

Our sons and daughters are not willing to overlook what the monsters did, Netanyahu said. But polls show a little more than half of Israel wants the Gaza war to end and wants a deal with Hamas for the release of the remaining hostages. Gaza remains a conundrum. Shira Efron is research director of the nonpartisan Israel Policy Forum. Most Israelis, we see it in every poll,

understand now that this war that started as a war of necessity has now turned into a war of choice by the government. Since breaking a ceasefire and resuming fighting six weeks ago, Israel has been waging a very different war than before, taking over more territory and banning the entry of all food into Gaza, hoping Hamas surrenders.

On Memorial Day, Israeli airstrikes killed scores of Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials. They say Israeli strikes have killed more than 52,000 people throughout the war. On a day of official ceremonies, many Israelis chose unofficial ways to grieve. At a fountain in Tel Aviv, every inch is covered in photos, stickers, teddy bears commemorating young Israelis killed during the war.

Shir Laufer was among dozens there. She was remembering her first love, who died by suicide last year on his way to report for duty. She said he had suffered trauma from his years as a combat flight navigator. There's a tendency to think if you're in the skies, you don't see anything, she says, unlike foot soldiers.

But she says the decisions you make inside a fighter jet weigh just as heavily. We spoke on Zoom to another Israeli, Gilad Golan, who's visiting Peru to reenact a trip he once took with his son, Sagi. He was killed on day two of the war, battling Hamas militants who had infiltrated Israel. It was days before he was supposed to marry his boyfriend. Every day that I hear about another fallen soldier, I think about the family, how they get there.

message how their lives are broken forever. Hundreds more Israelis are grieving this year. Israel says it's lost 456 soldiers and civilians since last Memorial Day. Daniel Estrin, NPR News, Tel Aviv. That's the state of the world from NPR. Thanks for listening.

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